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Another Newbie


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Hi,

Another newbie got the bug (back) due to BBC!

I've a budget of ~£500-600 for my scope. I'm looking at the Skyliner FlexTube series.

I can't decide whether to go for the 200P AUTO (8") or the 250PX Non-Auto (10") version. Advice on what the benefits to me will be?

I'm a keen amateur photographer too. I have a Canon EOS 500D camera. I will not be modding it as I use it a lot, but I do want to take some nice astro shots. Will these telescopes be ok for that? I'm talking nice impressive pictures of Jupiter, Saturn, maybe Neptune (if possible), plus some good nebula shots.

I also dug out an old Tasco 302003 Reflector from the loft. I put it up there when I couldn't work out how to see anything clearly years ago. d=76mm/f=700mm, is this any good does anyone know?

Also, any stargazers near J9 of M25 willing to give me any tips in person?

Thanks

Steve

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Welcome to SGL !.

I'm not an astro-imager myself but I belive you should be considering scopes that are equatorially mounted, even for planetary imaging. Also I understand that web cams are more suited to planetary imaging than DSLR's are.

On the visual side, the scopes you are looking at are great - having the extra aperture is not something you would regret - the 10" gathers 56% more light than the 8" which is especially noticable on deep sky objects.

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Hi Steve

Welcome aboard.

There will be a dob guy (or gal) along shortly I don't doubt to point you in the right direction.

Dobs aren't really suitable for imaging unless you mount the ota on a eq mount, then it stops being a dob.

Let us know which is your primary passion observing or imaging. Then someone will steer you in the right direction.

Cheers

Dave...

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Hi and welcome from me too....you need to ask the Dark Lords oc Astroimaging what they suggest. An EQ mount will be a must though.

Bear in mind the sorts of pics shown on tv and in mags are often the result of expensive kit and a lot of blood, sweat and tears.

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What equipment you will need depends on your targets, but the mount is the most important equipment in astrophotography, so spend your money on the mount.

For deep sky objects, your budget will get you a mount: HEQ5 SynTrek £600, or Astrotac with polar scope £500.

HEQ5 is a fully equipped equatorial mount and can take a telescope and accept autoguider. Astrotac is a compact lightweight portable unit for DSLR and lens. You will need a good tripod and 2 heads to use Astrotac, so unless you already have these it may add another £2-300. You can use your camera lens to start with. If you choose the HEQ5, you can add a telescope at a later stage. ED80 will be a good start.

Moon and planets are a bit cheaper, because there is less demand on accurate tracking. An EQ5 with RA motor (£280) + Skymax 127 (£230) will be a good starting point. However, you may need another camera, one with smaller sensor and greater pixel density, like a hacked webcam or a DMK21.

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I'm not an imager but purchasing equipment to collect the 'data' is one thing but then you have to process that data and from what I've seen, this part of the process can make a lot of difference to the final image. There seems to be quite a lot of stuff out there that is free to use but equally there are other useful programs that you will have to pay for.

My only recommendation is to buy the book "Making Every Photon Count" which is available from First Light Optics. It is a very good read detailing all that you need to know and what you will need to get to create decent images. It is better to have an overview of the requirements at the start so that you don't go and buy kit that will prove to be inappropriate later on. Good astrophotography does come at a price and there is no escaping that.

Clear skies

James

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